Hal Finney. a well-known software programmer and cryptographer who was a mainstay in the local running community, passed away recently after a five-year fight against ALS, his family said.
Finney, 58, played major roles in the development of PGP Corp. encryption software and bitcoin source code.
His contributions to the field won him a lifetime achievement award and international recognition as a pioneer in “cypherpunk” programming.
When his involvement in bitcoin source code development became public, he was interviewed by reporters from Forbes, Wired and other national media.
Finney kept working on his programming as long as he could, using various technologies to help him type and communicate as he lost mobility.
Born in Coalinga, Finney met his wife, Fran, at Cal Tech and the two moved to the Santa Barbara area in the early 1990s.
They had just celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary when Finney was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, in August 2009.
ALS affects motor neurons, the muscle-controlling nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement.
Over time, muscles get weaker and patients lose control of voluntary movement, which can lead to paralysis.
Hal and Fran joined the local Muscular Dystrophy Association support group, and started a fundraiser linked to the annual Santa Barbara Marathon.
Locally, Finney was known as a serious runner and a member of the Santa Barbara Athletic Association.
“His favorite long run was to wait until very low tide and run from Leadbetter to Goleta Beach,” Fran said.
Before his diagnosis, he had hoped to get a Boston Marathon-qualifying time in the Santa Barbara Marathon.
He couldn’t run within a few months, and ended up walking across the finish line hand in hand with Fran.
The marathon fundraiser event became an annual tradition.
Finney also had a private pilot’s license and loved to fly.
“When our daughter Erin was going to college at UC Irvine, Hal loved to fly from Santa Barbara Airport to Irvine to bring her home for a weekend visit and then fly her back,” Fran said.
Finney died Aug. 28, and will have his body cryogenically frozen in an Arizona facility, according to his wishes.
He is survived by his wife, Fran; their children, Jason and Erin; his brother, Mike; and his sisters, Kathy and Pat.
The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the nonprofit ALS Association Golden West Branch or Hospice of Santa Barbara.
Hospice staff gave the family a lot of support over the past three years, Fran said.
The ALS Association Golden West Branch can be reached at P.O. Box 565, Agoura Hills, CA 91376. Hospice of Santa Barbara can be reached at 2050 Alameda Padre Serra, Suite 100, Santa Barbara, CA 93105.
The monthly ALS support group is sponsored by the Muscular Dystrophy Association and meets at the Cottage Rehabilitation Institute at 2415 De la Vina St. The next meeting is at noon Sept. 19 and is open to the public.
“After he was diagnosed with ALS, he and I together did the monthly Santa Barbara ALS support group for five years, and I intend to continue doing it on my own,” Fran said.
— Noozhawk news editor Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
